A Lonely Child
by Twozulz
Summary: Yet another solitary Christmas. A fiery homeless girl who knows just a little too much about a certain Time Lord. And a key to the destruction of time itself? The Doctor may not be as alone in the universe as he once thought.
1. A Stolen Screwdriver

It was a regular day before the Christmas season. Lights glowed from the houses on the main street of the town, indicating the warmth inside. Laughter and carols echoed around the area from the churchgoers racing back from Mass. Even the familiar smell of turkey and pudding wafted through the air. It was but an ordinary Christmas Eve's Eve outside Chiswick.

However, though everything looked normal on the surface, it was not a regular Christmas night. Nobody in town, all safe and happy at home, noticed the ancient blue police box standing at the edge of the leading street- so out of place compared to the white snow falling around it. Nobody noticed the man who stepped out of it either, straightening his bow tie and buttoning up his brown tweed jacket. Nobody even saw him start to walk down the lane, stopping about halfway to look around in a circle at the sight around him.

There was only one who noticed, in the shadows of an alleyway.

The strange man continued to stand frozen in the middle of the road, seeming to be locked into a memory he could not escape. Nonetheless, his eyes proceeded to wonder and observe the scene, eventually focusing on a lit window. And as he stared at the window panes, feeling the happiness and warmth radiating from inside, there was a sort of flicker in the kind, yet so old, worn eyes of the young man. A sort of hunger- as if he wished he could join in the festivities, having the memories of past Christmas nights with friends and family long since gone opening thought-to-be-healed wounds.

For several minutes he continued gazing at scenery. Finally though, he realized the futility of memory and continued to drag his feet through the snow. Walking to whom or what he did not know- but a flash of ginger hair, sarcastic remarks, and ever-present slaps and sassiness echoed through his mind. And, after strutting along for a few more steps, before he knew it, he was waving his sonic screwdriver all over, trying to exactly locate why the TARDIS had dropped him here, of all places.

Just then, something flashed in the corner of his vision. Scanning around, he located a bush under the window that he had just been looking in. He swore on the universe that he had just seen that bush move, like someone was hiding behind it. Woken out of remembering, the man looked around at what he thought he had saw. But the little green plant was just swaying in the cold wind. Shrugging what he had just seen off as an optical illusion, he started to walk even further down the street.

Rustling. This time the sound confirmed that the bush had moved. Suddenly, he noticed a shadow behind him, a shadow that had seemed to just come out of the plant. Though he wouldn't care to admit it, his hearts were pumping rapidly.

"Who's there?" the man pulled his coat closer into his chest. No sound, no movement, nothing. The bush was still, and as far as his senses told him, there was nothing. But his mind still insisted that someone was waiting for him.

He soon began to become impatient, twisting his hands around in that way of his. "It's all right to come out, you know! I don't bite!" he yelled over the bitter cold wind. No response.

He lingered for a few seconds before deciding that the TARDIS had just malfunctioned somewhere in the time vortex and that he was not needed where he was. The strange man twisted around, put his screwdriver back into his pocket, and started walking back down the road.

But what was that sound he heard behind him? After a few seconds lost in thought aimlessly walking, he remembered. Footsteps. Oh, yes, that's what he could hear! There was definitely someone behind him- someone that didn't want to be seen. The only question was how to lure them out of the shadows. How to bait the someone in and ask them what they wanted from him. But how?

The only answer he could come up with was to keep walking. So he stepped even farther down the street, hoping with all his essence that he would hear more footsteps behind him if he stopped again.

He got what he wanted. Sure enough, once he skidded to a halt near the end of the road, near the strange blue police box, there was yet again the unmistakable sound of a person, or at least something humanlike, behind him.

But what could this being possibly want from him?

The man's continued routine of walking and stopping soon became monotonous and boring. And though he was perspiring at the prospect of what could be behind him like he never had before, the strange man knew he would have to face his fears sooner or later. He counted down mentally in the depths of his head, readying himself.

Three, two, one...

And then out of the corner of his eyes he saw a shadow from behind him stretch and lengthen. He lifted up his foot to break into a full run when another toe somehow slipped in front of him and made him fall head-first into the chilly snow. And a hand, a hand in his jacket-

Complete and utter silence followed.

The Doctor stood up as fast as he could from the snow and scanned the area around him. Nothing! The shadow had left just as quickly as it had come. He reached into his pocket for his sonic screwdriver to check for any suspicious signs of life.

But there was nothing there. His screwdriver was missing.

The man muttered to himself, pacing back and forth, wondering exactly how he had lost it. Never, in almost a thousand years of travelling time and space, had he ever misplaced his sonic for this long! How, how could he have lost it?

He eventually came to a conclusion. The shadow. It had to be. The mysterious person behind him, the one in the shadows, had wanted his screwdriver! But whatever for? Looking down at the ground now for clues on the whereabouts of his shadowy friend, he spotted two pairs of little feet, freshly carved out in the snow, heading towards an alleyway. Sprinting, he followed the tracks.

His first act was to cough at the soot in the dirtiness of the alley. Bending down even further to look at the snow, he watched the tracks slowly become more and more hidden by dust and trash. Losing all hope of finding his sonic screwdriver, reminiscing about that time on Nexas and landing on the population's most sacred religious site... yeah, that hadn't been the best of ideas-

The Doctor suddenly heard scuffling. Near him. He must have backed his little shadow in an alleyway corner. How perfectly convenient! Glancing in every which way, his eyes came to rest on the image of a faint figure clustered near a dumpster. He'd found it! He was going to get his screwdriver after all!

Smiling to himself, he straightened his tweed jacket again and hoped that his bow tie looked spiffy. Clearing his throat, he began to speak.

"All right, I know you're here. I also know what you stole, and quite frankly, I'd like it returned. So, just come out- okay, I know you don't like to particularly do that, but I promise, I won't hurt you or anything. I just want my screwdriver back, that's it," he rambled, waiting for a response.

None came.

The man sighed and ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. "You want to play with me? Okay, I can play," he said as he stormed to the dumpster. The Doctor could practically hear it breathing now. He turned his face to look around the side of the object and was met with the face of a girl with a very shiny gun.

As he himself was goaded into another corner by the mysterious female, he got his first real look at the thief.

She couldn't be older than fifteen. Frizzy, wild, brownish red hair framed her pale face that held two almost frighteningly deep blue eyes. She wore a ratty white v-neck and blue jeans covered with soot and other muck- obviously she'd been getting dirty for quite a while. And he couldn't deny her .44 pistol was very, very shiny.

Gulping a bit and plastering a smile on his face, he looked at the girl and pointed at her gun. "Aren't you a little young to be carrying around a weapon?" he asked.

Clearly, this was not the best question to ask as the pistol was pushed further near his face. The girl spoke, her voice surprisingly calm. "I'm older than I look, mister," she said condescendingly. Her eyes scrunched up as she studied his face. "Who exactly are you? And why are you here?" the girl asked, still raising the gun straight towards his face.

The man grinned again. "First, I'm the Doctor. And second, well, particularly, when things are stolen from people, they run off and try to somehow find them and get them back. And you have a certain possession that, as I stated earlier, would like returned." He straightened his bowtie for good measure.

The girl narrowed her eyes and reached into a pocket of her jeans. Pulling out an object, she waved it in front of his face. "You mean this?"

The Doctor laughed as he saw his sonic, the thing lighted up and chittering about. Pointing at it with his almost ever-present smile, he looked at his little thief. "Exactly."

And the young girl grinned back at him- a very sly grin. Putting the pistol back in another pokcet of her pants, she seemed to be studying the screwdriver. Looking at the Doctor, she tapped the instrument up and down in the palms of her hand. Continuing to examine the device, she started talking.

"I'd say this would sell for a good amount of pounds, don't you think, Doctor? A couple of four course meals." The girl chuckled as she walked back and forth. "Looks like government technology not yet released to the public, if you ask me." She glanced at the man, locking eyes with him. "Pretty fascinating steal. How long've you been on the streets?" The girl then smiled, a hint of sadness on her lips. "Been here six months myself." She then looked back at him, expecting an answer.

Realizing he wasn't being cornered anymore, the Doctor leaped in the other direction. "Um, I'm actually not homeless- in your sense anyway, or "on the streets" for that matter. Though I did get into a car chase with the Mafia once, long story, another place and time for it," he answered. Staring at her, he asked, "What's your name?"

The girl looked up at him from where her eyes had been on the yucky snow below her. Narrowing her eyes yet again, her hands swinging behind her back, she finally responded. "Lily."

The strange man bent down next to her, putting his cold hands on her back. "Well, Lily- lovely name by the way, I knew another girl named Lily- by the looks of you, and please, don't be offended by this, I'd say you haven't eaten anything substantial in a few days." He glanced at her again. "Am I right?"

Lily looked into his eyes, an emotion he couldn't quite read on her face. She mumbled something unintelligible to the Doctor.

"Sorry?"

"Two weeks." she frowned and moved a bit away from him. "I haven't had anything but bread and carrots for two weeks."

It was the Doctor's turn to look down. Taking a moment of silence in respect for her hunger, he looked back up at the young girl. "You know Lily, if you drop the gun and give me back my screwdriver, I'll take you to my TARDIS and let you eat as much as you want." He studied her clothes. "I'll get you a new outfit too. Can't imagine that's too fashionable."

He grinned unwillingly as Lily laughed. But soon, her eyes became cold again. "No."

The Doctor looked at her in disbelief. Never in his life had he had someone refuse food and clothes. "What did you say?" he asked, just to make sure.

Lily stared at him. "I said no." Pulling her pistol back out again, she looked into the man's eyes in that way of hers. "I've got everything I need to make a living for myself on my own. I've been doing it quite a while, and let me tell you, I can keep on doing it." And, coming up closer into the Time Lord's face, she whispered, "And no one, _ever_, asks me to drop my gun." Then, as quick as a flash of lightning, she dashed off down the alleyway back into the middle of town. Yelling in exasperation, the Doctor ran after her.

He saw the patch of slick ice seconds before her mind registered she was about to fall. But his shouts of warning did not come quickly enough. THirty seconds later, a hungry, homeless, fiery redhead was passed out unconscious in an alleyway in Chiswick.

The Doctor sighed with annoyance as he imagined having to drag her back all the way to the TARDIS.

But he did it anyway.

* * *

**Ugh. Why does this keep happening? Sorry for my disappearance from Fan Fiction again. I just get busy, or I'm stuck on what to write, or, just... ARGH.**

**So over the past month I have become absolutely obsessed with Doctor Who. Seriously, I've stayed up until like four in the morning trying to watch episodes. I've cried so much I'm actually a little embarrassed with myself. And, having severe writer's block on my existing stories, this idea just came to me, and I had the idea of sharing it with you all. **

**Also, hopefully, since school and finals are done in about two weeks, I will able to write so much more, and maybe even finish some stories! Well, at least I hope so.**

**Hope you enjoyed, as always, and feel free to alert, review, and favourite! Maybe I'll even be able to finish my upcoming Harry Potter/Doctor Who crossover and write new chapters for Learning to Stand and my Little Mermaid/Harry Potter crossover (yep, shameless self promoting).**

**Have a great Mother's Day!**


	2. Among the Stars

Lily's head was throbbing painfully- her whole body ached, and worse, she had absolute no idea why she felt so terribly. Opening her eyes slowly, a bright light filled her vision. Lily groaned at the brightness and struggled greatly to fully expose her eyes to the light. And when she saw where she was, the girl immediately sat up, shocked.

She seemed to be in some sort of control room. In the middle of the space was a huge console-thing, surrounded by so many buttons, screens, and levers that her head hurt even more when she looked at it. Glancing back at where she had been lying, there were white wooden doors and a sort of mattress that Lily guessed she had been sleeping on. Climbing up the step in front of her, she studied the console even further, touching a wire.

"Ah, I wondered when you'd be up!" a voice said from behind her.

Turning around to see where the sound was coming from, Lily almost laughed at the strange man in front of her.

He wore impossibly big wellies and brown pants. Suspenders and a tweed jacket outlined the top of his skinny figure. However, the most laughable piece of his clownish outfit was a bowtie- a striking blue one.

But suddenly she remembered a sooty alleyway, and the unusual instrument she had taken off that man. How he'd offered to feed and clothe her in that TARDIS of his… Quickly, she patted the pockets of her blue jeans to pull out her baby .44, only to find nothing.

Scowling at the man, Lily demanded, "Where's my gun, mister?" Harsh and cold. The way she'd always been.

The man started walking over to the console, babbling about. "You're lovely pistol is in a high-security vault," he said, watching as she made a run to find the weapon. "So don't bother trying to find it. You can't even crack the code. There are too many numbers in too many combinations for a puny human brain to solve. Actually," he scratched his head, "They aren't really human numbers."

Hardly understanding his rambling but coming to the conclusion she wasn't going to be getting back her gun soon, she gestured around the place. "Okay, Doctor, where exactly are we? I mean," she stroked the screen in front of her. "It sort of looks like, I don't know… a spaceship."

The Doctor smiled and rubbed his hands. Now up to the console level with Lily, he started to fiddle with some levers, glancing at her from time to time. When he seemed done with everything, he looked back up at the girl. "Well Lily, you probably think that because you're exactly right." Gesturing around the room, he announced, "Welcome to my TARDIS. That's T-A-R-D-I-S if I wasn't clear enough. And that wonderful acronym stands for Time and Relative…"

"Dimension in Space," Lily completed. Noticing his stare, she started to trail off. "It's like another dimension. To travel through time, a dimension, you need another dimension. So," she said, twirling her hair nervously, "this place is basically a time-travelling spaceship."

Still examining his stare, the girl snapped, "Just because I'm an orphan and homeless doesn't mean I didn't read scientific reports on theories of how time travel could be possible."

Coming out of his trance, the Doctor shook his head. "I really have got to stop bringing smart people aboard. I miss the 'It's bigger on the inside!' quip," he said.

Smiling at the man, Lily's grin slowly went away as a realization came upon her. "Wait. If this is essentially a spaceship…" she looked at the Doctor. "Then are you an alien?"

Grinning once again, the man pointed his finger at her. "Correctomundo!" Then, seeing her baffled expression, looked back down at the ground. "Okay, never saying that again."

Bringing his head up from embarrassment, he finally started to talk again. "Anyway, yes I am. And you're human, I hopefully presume? Not a shape-shifting Thaten?"

Smiling once again, Lily shrugged. "Sure." Then, suddenly, she looked like she was deep in thought. Glancing at the Doctor with the thousandth inquisitive look she had had that day, she walked up to him, stepping maybe ten centimetres away from him. This left the man feeling very claustrophobic and cornered as Lily slowly brought her pointer finger up and poked the Doctor's nose. Bewildered, he tried to shake it off, but the girl wouldn't budge. And, after removing her finger from the bridge of his nose, she gaped at him, walking around in frantic circles.

"But how?" she muttered as her pacing became even more hurried. "You look completely human. You feel human… how can you be an alien?"

Searching desperately to evade Lily's increasingly predator-like circles, he fidgeted his bowtie nervously. "Common misconception actually. In more precise terms, you look Time Lord- or Lady, if we want to get technical. My race came first."

At first, there was a flabbergasted look on the teenager's face. Then, a glimmer of a grin, a chuckle, and then full-on laughter erupted. The Doctor wondered if she had gone insane.

Amidst her tears, Lily pointed at the Doctor. "Time Lords? That's what your species is called?"

Seeing the perfect chance to escape her frightening behaviour, the Doctor quickly stepped down from the area of the TARDIS' controls. Frowning at her question, he replied, "Yeah. So?"

Still chuckling, the girl answered, "Time Lord. Sounds like some funny, fairy tale character." Gazing up at the pulsating blue light in the tube above her, she pointed at it. "I mean, all this," she gestured around the TARDIS. "Is like some great bedtime story, isn't it?" Laughing and throwing up her arms while looking at the Doctor, the girl proclaimed, "I'm on a time machine in space!"

Glad that it was shock and not insanity that had caused Lily to go slightly bonkers, the Doctor watched as her expression became sullen again. Seemingly talking to herself, the man barely picked up her inaudible mumbling. "A dream," he thought he heard her whispering. "Just like…" Then she stopped to look at the Doctor, hands on her hips in a sudden display of attitude. "So you said this TARDIS can go anywhere in the universe? Any time period?"

"Everything that ever was or ever will be," the Doctor announced, as he seemed to be typing coordinates or something or other into the TARDIS.

"Wow." the girl murmured, about to touch another lever on the console when-

"GRR…" something rumbled. The Time Lord immediately jumped as a reflex. "What was that?" he exclaimed as he started running the TARDIS' security protocol and frowned. "It doesn't look by the readings that there's anything here besides us." He looked around the room. "The TARDIS is never wrong."

"Doctor?"

"She's always precise," he muttered.

"Doctor."

"Hush, Lily, listen with me, we got to determine where the sound is coming from…"

"Doctor!" Lily yelled, pointing at herself. When he looked her way, she blushed a little bit and then mumbled, "The noise was my stomach."

The Doctor stared at her, disbelief on his face. But soon he was laughing, laughing maniacally like Lily had minutes earlier. "That unearthly noise was your tummy?" he giggled.

"Yeah," the girl said, rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet. "Yeah, I think I'm hungry." Looking around the TARDIS room, she asked, "Is there a kitchen on this thing or something?"

She watched as the Doctor rushed up to the controls and pointed at her. "No Lily. You're not 'hungry.' You're starving," he replied as he clicked a few buttons and pulled some levers. Running around the console, he gestured toward her again. "And yes, there are many kitchens and other such eateries aboard the TARDIS, but right now there's only fish fingers and custard in them, and for some reason I don't think you'd fancy that." He went back to pushing and pulling things.

"Okay… wait! Fish fingers and custard?" Lily shouted as the TARDIS shuddered.

Smiling at the ridiculously confused look on her face, the Doctor looked at the girl. "We're going to get you some proper Christmas turkey, Lily," he laughed as he studied a screen on the console. "We're off to see the Ponds!"

* * *

**Lily is off to meet the Ponds! Yay! **

**So, thank you for the favourites and the reviews on this story! I really appreciate it. I had no idea if people would like Lily or not, but at least a few people do. And don't worry. She gets more mysterious later on...**

**Just to clarify, this is set in between The Wedding of River Song and The Doctor, The Widow, and The Wardrobe. Actually, the next scene is kind of a mix of the ending scene with Amy and Rory in that (sniffle, sniffle) and my own imagining of the Ponds meeting Lily. So yeah, REVIEW please and hope you liked, as always! Allons-y sweeties! A little bit more of finals studying to do and then SUMMER!**


	3. Silently Crying over Christmas Fajitas

Amy Pond stood near the stove, slowly stirring the red salsa in the pot in front of her. Sighing, she mentally cursed her husband, Rory, for, as usual, blowing up food in the microwave- this time the Christmas turkey. Now, instead of an actual, normal Christmas dinner, they were eating Mexican food. BUt then again, nothing was every "normal" for the Pond-Williams'. And, Amy argued internally, it was much better eating fajitas and salsa than being on a crashing spaceship, wasn't it?

After coming to this conclusion, she felt the aforementioned husband brush behind her, setting silverware and plates on the wooden coffee table. She didn't dare turn around to see the table though, even when she heard the clanging of knives and forks as they hit the floor- no doubt victim to Rory's clumsiness. No, Amy Pond, the woman who had saved the universe more times than she cared to admit, could not, would not, look behind her. Could not look at the extra place at the table that Rory had set. Even now, her heart ached as she out the little window above the stove, looking out among the stars, remembering that wonderful man- that proud, foolish, mad, yet fantastic man that had truly messed up her life in the most amazing ways. Though Amy tried to keep herself calm- not daring to cry- she felt a silent tear drip from her cheek into the salsa below, reminiscing about all the adventures she's ever had, the revelations, the craziness, the newness and wonderment of it all threatening to make her start sobbing, Oh, how she wished she could hear the sound of the TARDIS in her backyard. Why, she was even ready for the appearance of that stupid tweed jacket and bowtie...

"VWORP, VWORP."

Amy stiffened at the familiar sound. No, it couldn't be. There was no way...

"VWORP, VWORP."

She turned around to lock gazes with Rory, who had also stiffened and had stopped picking silverware off of the floor. They stood in silence, waiting for the sound again.

Five minutes went by. Then ten.

The noise never came.

After fifteen minutes, the couple was tired of waiting, looking away from each other and dismissing the sound as just a delusion created by their imagination and longing, they both quietly went back to their jobs.

The strange noise was soon forgotten, however, as Amy began to chastise Rory for spilling the fajita fillings again. The scolding soon turned into a heated argument about whether shredded beef or chicken was really the best choice for fajitas, which then eventually led to such a climax in the debate that Amy had grabbed a water gun, her Scottish accent becoming even more incoherent, and Rory's face was as red as Rudolph's nose. Nobody heard the doorbell softly ring until it had rung for the third time, in which Rory's hand went up, shushing his wife.

"Amy, stop. Do you hear that? It sounds like someone's at the door." He continued to walk towards the entryway of the house and strained to look out the stained glass window. A puzzled expression on his face, the man looked back at Amy. "There actually is somebody outside the door."

The woman muttered something under her breath about "damn nagging salesmen" and held up the toy water gun she was carrying like the weapon it was. A bit nervous about her behaviour, Rory asked tentatively, "Amy, what are you doing with that?" An almost manic gleam appeared in his wife's eyes as she replied, "A taste of his own medicine."

Realising now that he did not want to particularly be part of what was going to happen next, the Last Centurion scuttled back into the kitchen, shouting over his shoulder, "I refuse to be blamed for the injuries of an innocent civilian!"

Tossing her husband's statement aside, Amy stepped to the door, her hand on the trigger, ready to unmercifully splatter the idiot salesman with cold tap water. But when she whipped open the door she almost dropped the gun.

There he was, stupid tweed and bowtie adorned, with the same floppy brown hair and old green eyes. The man was obviously nervous, rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet, his hands fidgeting with his bowtie. Staring at Amy with a half-smile on his face, he managed to remark, "Hello, Pond."

She froze as a million feelings raced through her. Happiness, disappointment, anger, sadness, excitement, and joy swirled around so fast in her head and stomach that she could barely breathe, much less make a decision on how to respond. So Amy did the first thing that came to her mind- she squirted water all over the man. And, just when it seemed he was coming to terms with these words of endearment, she sprayed him again.

After a few moments of patting down his clothes, the Doctor locked onto Amy's eyes, sighing, an extreme puppy-dog expression taking over his features. "How long has it been?"

No matter how much Amy told herself not to reply out of spite, she did. "Two years," the woman said, her voice decidedly shaky.

Silence followed, as no one knew what to say first. It was painfully obvious that both persons desperately wanted to hug the other, but the stubborness of the pair won out. Finally, Amy mumbled harshly, looking away from the Doctor, "I'm not hugging first."

And to this statement, the man looked away as well, responding, "Nor am I."

This stalemate hardly lasted a second as the pair threw their arms around each other, smiling widely. Amy led the Doctor into the house, calling to her husband, "It's safe to come out now, Rory." Taking immense delight in the joy on her husband's face as he came out, the two men hugged, Rory then motioning toward the kitchen he had just strolled out of. "There's a place set especially for you," he remarked as he walked back to the table, Amy following close behind.

But the Doctor was surprisingly overwhelmed. He seemed frozen on the spot, staring back across the street at the familiar blue TARDIS he had left, when he felt something run down his face. Taking his hand up to his features, the man slowly wiped the mysterious substance from under his eyes, examining it on his hand. A salty tear lay on it, sparkling in the light above the front flight of steps.

In the kitchen however, Amy was beginning to worry about her friend. Warning Rory she was going to check on him, the woman walked to the entryway yet again, horribly shocked to see tears spill over his face. Sadly smiling at the man, she quipped, "Are you crying, you big lug?" Receiving no reply, she motioned to a spot near her. "Come here." The Doctor cautiously stepped over, the two hugging each other and rocking back and forth for a long while.

Amy was quite enjoying her little moment when movement in the corner of her eye, near the TARDIS, caught her attention and she could just barely make out the silhouette of something walking out of the machine. Tensing, she whispered to the Doctor, "There's something near the TARDIS."

Swiveling around to see the sight, the man immediately sighed, murmuring under his breath a sentence that suspiciously sounded like, "I told her five minutes!" Confused as to this statement, Amy moved out of the Doctor's way to see a mahogany-haired girl staring up at her.

Surprised as she was, the strange visitor didn't miss a beat. Glaring at the Doctor, she yelled, "'Five minutes,' you said. 'It's an emotional moment,' you said. I've been standing in the TARDIS for almost thirty minutes!" Giving the man another death glare, she stared at his features, her eyes widening. "Are you actually crying?" She whistled. "You never cry." Her gaze suddenly moved on to Amy and Rory, who had just come back from the kitchen to see what the ruckus was about. "You must be Amelia Jessica Pond," she said, raising her hand to shake Amy's. When Amy made no movement to return the gesture, she shrugged and nodded at Rory instead. "And you're Rory Peter Williams Pond, right? Heard a lot about you."

The strange girl now gestured to herself. "I'm Lily Isabella Schmidt, and yes, I'd prefer you use my whole name." She then elbowed the Doctor, announcing, 'And this is the Doctor, as I'm sure you know. Now, he won't exactly tell me his real name, only an obviously fake generic name, and every time I ask, he talks about something called the Silence and "the fields of Trenzilor"- not very clear on what all of that is, exactly- but I guess he either has an extremely embarrassing real name or his name could actually be the end of us all. Just guessing though," the girl shrugged, Amy taking notice of the Doctor's red face.

Acknowledging the awkward silence, Amy gulped and looked at Lily. "So, um.. exactly how long've you been travelling with the Doctor?" she asked.

The girl beamed in reply, saying, "Well, it's all wibbly wobbly, timey wimey, but I'd have to say, erm... five hours."

Amy slowly nodded her head at this, glancing near her to see Rory playing with something in his khaki pockets and the Doctor taking extreme interest in a patch of snow on the doorstep. 'Well," the woman eventually got around to remarking, "there's no reason for us to be standing out in the cold if there's dinner on the table. Just follow Rory, Lily, and he'll direct you to the kitchen so you can wash up a bit. We'll be there in a minute." She silently watched as Rory led the strange girl into the house, and then turned on the Doctor.

'Who is she?" Amy sputtered, looking up at the Doctor.

The man shrugged back. "You heard her for yourself, Amelia. Lily Isabella Schmidt."

Groaning at his stubborness, she decided to try again. "But who is she really, Doctor? The girl doesn't look a day over fourteen!" She and the Doctor were heading into the kitchen now, still talking in hushed tones.

As she went to the sink to wash up, he muttered in response, "Well, she said she was older than she looked."

"You haven't asked how old she is? She didn't even say how old she is?" Amy asked, flabbergasted at the man's carelessness.

The Doctor frowned. "I don't like telling my own age to people, Pond. Cut the kid a break." They were sitting down at the table now.

Amy sighed again. "Exactly! She's a kid!" her voice was getting louder. "I mean, what about her-"

"My parents?"

Amy Pond whipped around to see Rory and Lily staring at her intently. Feeling colour rise into her cheeks, she attempted to reply, only a steady stutter of words coming form her mouth as she watched Lily shift uncomfortably.

The Doctor finally stepped in and stopped the awkwardness, looking Amy in the eyes and saying with a seriousness like he hardly ever used, "Lily was homeless when I found her. In an alleyway in Chiswick, Amy."

"Homeless? Why? Didn't you have someone to take care of you?" Rory piped up and asked, staring at the girl with the same shocked expression his wife had.

Lily laughed, a strange, hard, cold laugh that made everyone squirm in their seats. "No, my family's long since dead. And even if anyone were alive, they wouldn't care about me. I'm certified mentally unstable," the girl stated as if it were a compliment.

Following another silent pause, the girl continued to talk, seemingly trailing off into her own little world. "I've lived in a foster facility most of my life. But about six months ago they found my records and let's just say..." She chuckled. "I lived there too long."

She glanced around at the confused and taken-aback looks on everyone's faces and groaned, burying her face in her hands. "I don't mean as a criminal! I- I mean, I've had a few run-ins with the law, but-" Lily sighed again and then murmured, "Just forget it."

After yet even more uncomfortable silence, Rory began to speak. "Well, fajitas anyone?"

* * *

"I think I'm going to go to sleep now," a tired voice groaned from a chair in the living room.

But Lily wasn't the only victim to exhaustion. The crackle of the electronic fireplace near the green plastic Christmas tree was slowly lulling everyone to sleep after a huge meal of tortillas, shredded chicken _and_ beef, chips, and salsa. Though it wasn't the traditional Christmas turkey she'd been promised, Lily had repeatedly remarked through the course of dinner that it was the best meal she'd ever had, much to the enjoyment of the Ponds. No matter how strange she was, the couple would be pleased with anyone who complimented their cooking. And how could you not possibly form at least a tiny bond with someone while singing around the piano "Jingle Bells" after a little too much accidentally spiked eggnog?

"I think I'll be going to sleep now," Lily said a bit louder, hoping that someone would respond.

However, all she got from the supposedly responsible adults as a reply were sleepy nods and the Doctor's slurred response of "Yes, yes, fine, fine." Sighing, the girl started to head upstairs when quiet voices from the area where she had just left suddenly demanded her attention. Silently, she skidded back down the stairs and peered around the corner of the door to the kitchen and living room.

OoOoOoO

"You really can't possibly be keeping her, are you?" Lily heard Amy whisper.

The surprisingly uninfluenced voice of the Doctor answered back. "Where else does she have to go to, Amy? I can't just drop her in Chiswick again and let her fend for her life, can I? No one deserves that."

Following a slight pause, a smug tone entered Amy's voice as she stated, "You're empathising with her because she's so much like yourself. The little lost homeless Time Lord and Lily."

"Don't be ridiculous, Pond," the Doctor replied, but the slight shakes and stammers in his voice gave him away. "I just want to help her."

"So she can help you, yeah?" the woman countered. Then, sadly, she rubbed his knee positioned on the chair next to her. "Lily Isabella Schmidt's another silently crying child you have to interfere with the universe to save."

"_Another silently crying child..._" he muttered back. Looking into the woman's eyes, he softly smiled. "It's good to see you again, Amy."

So Lily watched as Amy got off of the sofa and hugged the man around the chest. "It's good to see you too."

And just as silently as she had climbed down, Lily started to head up the staircase again, wondering if coming along with this time-travelling alien was really better than the alleyways in Chiswick.

* * *

**Again, I apologise for taking so long to update. This summer has been busier than I thought it would be, and I'm sadly having a lot of writer's block. As always, hope you enjoy. The Doctor, the Ponds, and Lily will be going on their own adventures soon!**


	4. Off to Save the Universe

"Doctor. C'mon… Wakey-wakey."

Groaning at the annoyed noise and the sudden flash of sunlight he noticed from the corner of his eye, the Doctor grabbed the fluffy pillow next to him and pulled it over his head- willing that he could be left to sleep. After all, he didn't get much rest anyway.

There was no such luck.

"No! Seriously, you need to _GET OUT OF BED_. If I'm going to have to do this every morning I swear I'm going to pour water all over your precious bow ties," the voice continued whining.

Shrugging the comment off, the man snuggled further into the covers, waiting for the person to just somehow give up and leave him in peace. But suddenly just as he thought this, he felt a tug come from the direction of his pillow, pulling it away from him. After a few moments of a sleepy tug-of-war, his beloved shield was taken and light blinded him. The sound screeched again.

"DOCTOR, WAKE UP THIS _BLOODY _INSTANT."

He dove back under the covers.

Hearing a slight sigh, the voice began again, this time sounding calmer and relaxed, yet not the least less bit agitated. "Okay, Doctor. I'm giving you this one chance. Get up now, and I promise not to harm you in any way. However, if you don't come down to breakfast _right now_- and Amy's made all the effort to make blueberry pancakes for us and even fish fingers and custard for you, though I have no _bloody _idea why- you will suffer the consequences. Yes or no? It's your choice."

Through great effort, the Doctor finally uttered his grand response. "No," he murmured tiredly.

And surprisingly, nothing happened.

Marveling in his seemingly ultimate victory, the man smiled and cuddled himself back into his sleeping position, unaware of the sound of the guest bathroom sink being turned on and footsteps coming ever closer to his bed, or the tip of a mug of-

_COLD**. **_That's all he could register as an extremely cold liquid ran down his body and the covers, instantly jolting him awake. As fast as he could, he scrambled out of bed, leaving the still-cold water dripping down him. He opened his eyes unwillingly and angrily; ready to smack the person upside the head who had done this to him.

But instead the Doctor stood, even more shocked than when the water had first hit. Lily Isabella Schmidt stood in front of him, gaping like she had just seen a naked man for the first time before an ear-splitting scream rocked the room, the girl yelling at the top of her lungs and running for her life.

"_**PUT SOME BLOODY BOXERS ON, DOCTOR!"**_

* * *

The Doctor quietly walked down the stairs to the kitchen, fully clothed. He grinned at Amy and Rory as he sat down at the table. He tried not to notice that Lily, over by the sink washing the dishes, was in fact avoiding his gaze.

A few moments of awkwardness later, Amy pushed a bowl of custard near him. "Thought you might like this," she whispered. Expressing his thanks, the Doctor quickly dipped one of the fish fingers in front of him into the mixture, not really knowing what to exactly say as everyone else dug into their meals. Not to mention the alcohol of last night was really starting to take its after-effects. Finally, Rory cleared his throat.

"Well, um… that's a really pretty dress you're wearing, Lily."

Beaming from behind the washrag, the girl answered back. "Thanks! I got it from the TARDIS wardrobe. You really can't believe the clothes in there, can you? Oh, especially those bow ties! Have you ever seen them? And the really sexy blue pinstriped suit. Not to mention that insanely long multicoloured scarf…"

"Lily," the Doctor injected, blood rising into his cheeks, "I really think you can stop now." Snapping her mouth shut, she glared at him, clearly saying _mind your own business_- but resumed working.

The silence quickly grew, until a large sigh escaped from Amy's mouth as she looked at Rory, who nodded. The woman then fiddled with her hair, making sure her sweater was on straight before looking into the Doctor's eyes and blurting, "We want to come with you."

The man looked ready to interrupt but she held her fingers to his lips. "Yes, I know what you're going to say. I heard it when you dropped us off here. You're worried about our safety, and yeah, you have every right to concern yourself with our well being. In fact, it's a bit flattering to have big old you worry about tiny us." She grinned, and then continued on. "But we're old enough to take care of ourselves, Doctor. I'm not the little seven year old Amelia you met when you crashed into my backyard. Me and Rory can handle anything you have to throw at us." And then, staring the Doctor down even more intently than before, she whispered, "And how can we live such a normal life after all you've shown us?"

Oh, he wanted so badly to refuse her. He wanted to keep her safe. But the pleading look in her eyes, and the memories of all they had done, won over him. And goodness knows he'd need some help controlling Lily.

"All right," he said, as Amy immediately sat up from the table, completely ignoring the food on it, and hugged the Doctor as tight as she ever had. Coming out of the hug, he was surprised to see Rory with two suitcases in his hands as the Last Centurion winked at him and headed out with Amy onto the street to the TARDIS.

"What about me, then?" A quiet voice popped out of nowhere as he heard the dishwasher door shut. The saddened face of Lily came into view. "You're going to drop me back in Chiswick, aren't you? You have Amy and Rory already," she mumbled.

The Doctor's hearts wilted a bit as he kneed down to her level. "No, Lily. Most certainly not. You're coming with me." Seeing the sheer expression of joy on her face, he took her by the hand to the TARDIS, shutting the door to Rory and Amy's house behind them for what would be a very long time.

* * *

**Again, so sorry it's taken such a long time to update, but I've had a lot of computer problems at the late and school will be starting soon and... ugh. This will be updated probably again today, as I've started on another chapter, but may not be up until tomorrow. Just a Programme and The Sea's Secret will hopefully be able to be updated this week as well, but I'm so, so sorry, I lost the chapter I had planned for Learning to Stand and will have to do it all over again, for anyone who is following these stories. Love you all and review and favourite and follow, please! It helps me want to work faster!**


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